Walk in the Bible - Genesis 23

 Walk in the Bible - Genesis 23

This passage opens up with Sarah's lifetime. This indicates that she died, but it also lets us know that this was considered a blessing. In fact, according to Jewish customs, death at an old age was considered a blessing and that's what this first chapter would have implied to the Jewish listeners at that time. In fact, Chizkuni echos this thought in his comments on Genesis 23 verse 2.

The second verse, in the Targum of Jonathan, outright tells us that she died during the time Abraham went to the mountain at GOD's request and almost ended up sacrificing Isaac. It also lets us know that Abraham mourned Sarah. On the same day, he heads over to the Hittites and asks to buy land to bury his wife.

Abraham had to do this on the same day as his wife's death, this was also a part of Jewish custom and to be honest, this was also a smart move, after all, there was no refrigeration at that time, and the Jewish people didn't cremate their dead either.  Had he not buried his wife, it would have attracted scavengers, like vulture and jackals. Of course , he would have done so anyway, because it was extremely important in his culture to be buried and not left out in the open. To be left out in the open dead was actually considered a curse, as evidenced by a Mesopotamian text with the curse "May the earth not receive your corpses."

Verse 3 seems like an odd verse as it's telling us that Abraham spoke to the Hittites asking them to purchase land to bury his wife in, it would seem natural that he'd ask. After all, he didn't grow up in this land, so therefore he'd have no burial plot for he and his wife. We need to remember that it was important for the Bible to point out that his wife hadn't been buried yet, because according to Jewish custom, once his wife was buried , he would have been expected to sit Shiva for his wife.  During that period he would have not interacted with anyone, nor would any visitor have spoken to him unless he spoke to them first.

Verse 4 pretty much backs up the fact that Abraham doesn't have a burial site in this town and is asking to buy a site from them. Bear in mind, GOD's already said that he'd give this land to his descendants, so he could just simply claim that right and take anyone's land. The Hittites already know he's a prophet and in verse 6 say as much. However, Abraham is offering to buy a burial plot from them.

In Verse 6, as I stated, the Hittites are letting him know that they know he's a prophet and therefore he can bury Sarah anywhere he wants to, they're telling him no one will object to this. Now, it sounds like they're really being nice, but the reality is, if Abraham doesn't buy land, Sarah could potentially be dug up and re-buried somewhere else, or the land could be plowed as used as a field, even though, according to Jewish Law, this can't be done at all!  Because Abraham knows who he's dealing with, he wants no complications, he just wants to bury his wife, that's it. Additionally, if a wealthy person squats on a Jewish farmers land, they'll likely not try to kick that wealthy person out, they'll just wait and once he leaves, they can sell the land for a higher price because of the improvements that person would make on the land.

Abraham rejects any kind of special treatment and as a matter of fact, he demonstrates this by bowing down to the ground, as a person would do if they were greeting a king or someone vastly superior to them. He then tells him he wants them ("them" being the leadership of the Hittites) to ask Ephron to sell him the cave at the edge of his land. That way, he can bury his wife and Ephron will not loose use of his land to farm on.  Under Jewish custom, he'd loose use of his field if Sarah was buried underneath it. Chizkuni reminds us that this, in fact, true, that he could keep his farm and use his field if only a corner part of it is used as a burial site. He also states he wants this done in front of the leadership of the Hittites so that everyone can see what's happening, as proof of the purchase.

As it happens, Ephron is already there, and he said as much, in fact, verse 10 lets us know that he not only spoke, but he spoke loudly so everyone could hear him. This was important because hardly anyone could read at that time, so contracts were done orally and before witnesses. In that same loud voice, Ephron told him he could take the field as well as the cave, that Ephron would give it to him. In fact, the exact words he uses tells us that in Ephron's mind, Abraham already owned the land, and that he need only bury his dead there.

Although Abraham was likely honored that this offer was being made to him, he showed his humility by bowing once again and insisting that he buy the land, not get it for free. It makes sense, after all, the King of Sodom allowed Abraham to take all the possessions he captured in war and Abraham refused (Genesis 14:21-23) lest it be said that he made Abraham rich. If he refused the King of Sodom, it only makes sense that he's refuse a similar offer from Ephron!  Remember this is happening on the same day Sarah died, so you can imagine the state of mind Abraham's in. He doesn't to haggle, he just wants to buy land to bury his wife.

Ephron decides to sell his land, and he rather casually says it's worth four hundred shekels of silver, but quickly asks "What's that between you and me?" kind of like saying "what's a fight between friends?".  According to Bereshit Rabah:58,7, Ephron's charging quite a bit more than what the land's worth. Rabbeinu Bahya says pretty much the same thing, however, this isn't a shared opinion. Onkelus says the land actually IS worth that amount of money, but he seems to be the only one saying that. Abraham doesn't try to talk him down in price, even though he very likely knows this land is overpriced as men of honor, as he was seen by this village, don't haggle, ever. It's seen as the honorable thing to do.

Abraham accepts Ephron's terms and pays him in full view over everyone there so they can see that he is indeed paying him. At that moment, the Bible lets us know that Abraham took ownership of the field and the cave and everyone in town knew this had happened, furthermore, it couldn't be challenged or revoked. Further, even though Abraham handed over the money Ephron asked, the land couldn't be his until the local community approved this purchase, which Tur HaAroch reminds us of. In Verse 18, we see that this happens and Abraham now owns the land, further Rashi, Chizkuni & Siftei Chakhamim all confirm this land rose in importance because of this purchase as well. Chizkuni states it rose in spiritual value, Rashi and Siftei Chakhamim state it simply rose in importance.

Only after the land was purchased legally, before the town and approved by the town, did Abraham bury his wife. This chapter ends with a single sentence in verse 20. This sentence, even though it's small, is VERY important. GOD made a promise to Abraham in Genesis 15:18-21 that HE would give his descendants the land from the river of Egypt as far as the Euphrates. He actually names the lands, and one of them is the land of the Canaanites.

In this chapter, part of that promise has come true, he now own part of the land in Canaan. Chizkuni tells us that that land belongs not only to Abraham, but to his descendants forever, unless they decide to relinquish their land. According to the law it must be done freely and not under force. On top of that, the land could be bought back by his family at the set price, which the priest set, not the owner, plus one fifth of the cost.

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Abraham was likely at his lowest point in his entire life. His wife had just died, and he had to bury her within three days, per the law, so he didn't have a lot of time to work with. He went into town to buy a piece of land to do this, as he didn't have a plot himself. He described himself as a sojourner, not as a resident, in the same way JESUS would centuries later, a sojourner with no place to lay his head (Matthew 8:20).

Although the townspeople saw him as a very important person, even a prince, and offered to just give him a spot, he refused. He didn't want problems now nor did he want any in the future. Further this was something that was typical of bargaining in Abraham's time and beyond. No one in the Middle East ever took that as a serious offer.

Bargaining in the Middle East begins with the greeting and once an item is ordered and a price is requested, it's fairly typical for the merchant to respond essentially the way Ephron responded. This starts a bargaining process that can including things like the merchant telling the buyer to leave, pretending that they're insulted, having his son or another relative play "good guy - bad guy" in front of the seller, to even, agreeing on a price. Despite this, bargaining is done to benefit the seller most of all, so the use of cunning and guile wasn't unheard of in Abraham's day and still isn't even today. Once Abraham was offered a price, he paid it without trying to bargain Ephron down as men of honor, he was considered to be as such by this town, didn't do that. It made them look bad to do so. He simply paid the price and once this transaction was approved, he buried his wife.  

As I said, he was at the lowest point of his life at this point, but he still let his yes be his yes and his no be his no, just as JESUS directed us to in Matthew 5:37 in his sermon on the mountain. GOD used the death of his wife to make part of HIS promise to Abraham become a reality. If anything, this shows that GOD is always with us, even in the worst moments of our lives and HE'S still in control. Nothing can change that.

That's true even now, during the Covid epidemic when we can't see an end to it, when we're practicing "safe distancing" from each other, when we have to wear a mask to go outside or be around other people, or even to go shopping. GOD still in control and HE can't be stopped by any of this. More than that, GOD can and will make this into a blessing, just as he did for Abraham.

If you're having trouble believing that, or even if you don't believe that at all, I'd love to talk to you. Send me an email and I'll be happy to talk.